XXIX ITU Congress

21/12/2016

482

Marisol Casado was re-elected as President of the International Triathlon Union at the 29th Congress on Sunday December 12 in Madrid for a third term. IOC President Thomas Bach, who spoke early in the ITU Congress, praised Casado and ITU as a good example of good governance and sustainability. Bach also thanked Marisol for “her always positive approach to sport, all the initiatives to include Paratriathlon under the triathlon umbrella and also included in the Rio Paralympics, and her willingness to adopt the Agenda 2020.”

During Congress, National Federations voted on Board Elections, with Loreen Barnett (CAN), Antonio Alvarez (MEX), Ria Damgren Nilsson (SWE) and Shin Otsuka (JPN), all of whom had previously served on ITU’s Executive Board, elected as Vice Presidents.

Debbie Alexander (RSA) and Barry Siff (USA) were re-elected for the Executive Board, while Ian Howard (GBR) joins the Executive Board and Terry Sheldrake (NZL) returns to the Board in a new position.

Congratulations to Loretta Harrop, Carol Montgomery, Brad Beven and Bevan Docherty – we are thrilled to honour your excellence in triathlon! This was the third edition of ITU’s Hal of Fame. “Despite our short history as an International Federation, ITU has been privileged to have witnessed incredible athletes accomplish amazing feats. They laid the foundation for the Federation we have grown into today,” said Casado.

In addition to the Hall of Fame inductions, ITU awarded Sheila O’Kelly the Michel Gignoux Award for significant contributions made to triathlon’s technical area. Mexico’s Claudia Beristain received the Women’s Committee Award of Excellence for her contributions in advancing women in triathlon.

ITU President’s Corner

2016 has been, without doubt, a very special year. It was a year in which we enjoyed the marvelous Olympic Games in Rio where triathlon had one of its most successful races. It was a year that saw the debut of paratriathlon at the Paralympic Games. It was a year in which our triathletes broke records, made history and showed the world how strong they are.

We’ve accomplished great things in 2016. Our National Federation family grew. We continued strongly in the fight against doping, working hard to keep triathlon clean. We’ve also had a very healthy year financially, as we were able to save money for the future of triathlon. We have become a model organization in good government and have invested heavily in the development in our sport.

It was a year, in short, that was very well rounded, which ended with a fantastic Congress, where we received the full support of IOC’s President, Thomas Bach, who praised our organization for our good practices, and awarded us with the “Sky is the limit” award . Now it is time to move forward to look at how we can make triathlon even better in the future.

Edmonton wins 2020 Grand Final

The International Triathlon Union has named Edmonton as the host city for the ITU World Championships Grand Final in 2020. The event will mark the third time Canada has hosted the World Championships with Edmonton having organised the race in 2001 and 2014. Edmonton was also the site of nine world cup events, and has hosted a stop on the World Triathlon Series every year since organising the Grand Final two years ago.

Last year, Edmonton welcomed paratriathletes for a World Paratriathlon Event, which they will do again in 2017 as host of a stop on the World Paratriathlon Series. In December of 2017, Edmonton will also welcome the final ITU Executive Board meeting of the year alongside the fourth edition of the ITU Science and Triathlon Conference.

Competition Rules updated

The ITU Executive Board met in Madrid ahead of the 29th Congress to hold its final reunion of the year, during which several important topics including competition rules and more were debated.

In relation to competition rules, the Board approved the use of disc breaks for non-drafting competitions. Paratriathlon will now offer six sport class races, as opposed to five. Furthermore, the former PT1 class split into subdivisions. Under this new classification, all sport classes will be renamed.
The field of athletes at ITU World Triathlon Series events will be reduced from 65 to 60, while elite competitions on the Grand Final and World Cups will see 70 athletes race as opposed to 75. The paratriathlon fields have been increased in most competitions.

In addition, athletes will be permitted thee use of mobile devices. However, any equipment that covers or is inserted into the ears are not allowed in competition.